Below is given the data
policy applied for the duration of the project. This states that after
the end of the project the gas emission data in the archive should be
made public after a delay of 1 month unless otherwise agreed between
the network administration and the Observatory.

In practice the emission
data that is presently in the archive is inconsistent and in many cases
erroneous. This is due to the fact that in order to derive accurate
fluxes local meteorological conditions have to be applied. The source
of this meteorological data as well as the way it has been implemented
varies strongly between the volcano observatories, causing a large
inconsistency between the datasets and in some cases serious errors.
The way data has been screened for quality control also varies strongly
between the datasets. For this reason a re-evaluation of the whole
dataset is undertaken, applying meteorological data in a consistent way
and making a screening of the data for improved quality control. This
re-evaluation is expected to be completed by the end of 2012. After
this date all the volcano emission data collected during the project
will be made publicly available, via this homepage as well as via other
data sources as WOVO-dat and GEO. For access to data from a specific
volcano before the dataset is completed you are suggested to contact
the NOVAC partner in charge of the measurements from this specific
volcano to discuss the status of that specific dataset.

Also for data collected
after the end of the project (31 March 2010), as well as data collected
by new partners an open data access policy is applied in line with the
general data policy agreed under the GEO-initiative;

Spectra are recorded at the observatories, and evaluated in
real time for risk assessment. In addition the local observatories will
exploit these data for local geophysical research (correlation with
seismic signals etc) and to make estimates of gas emissions from the
actual volcano.

Evaluated data (SO2 and BrO emissions) are provided
to the network in close to real time (the goal is real time with
continuous internet access). These data can then be exploited by the
partners for making global emission estimates, large scale geophysical
correlations etc.

In addition raw spectra are provided to the network. Because
of the large data volumes involved, this may be done with a more
relaxed time-schedule, typically on a monthly basis. In case of
extraordinary geophysical or atmospheric activity (volcanic eruptions,
earthquakes, forest fires….) all means should be undertaken to provide
at least a selected set of spectra on a daily basis.

All partners have full access to all data generated by the
instruments, however practicalities may hamper the access in the
beginning of the project until the network archiving routines has been
established. To promote the network, gas emission data will be
displayed in close to real time on internet. However, access to “hard
data” is restricted to the network partners for the duration of the
project. After the project has ended the observatories are still
obliged to provide data as long as they operate the instruments. During
this period also the “hard” gas data will be made available for the
public and scientific community. However, unless the observatory agrees
differently, a 1 month delay should be applied in order not to cause
problems in case of a volcanic crisis. Accesses to the raw spectra are
still restricted to the network participants. Of course all
observatories are always free to share their own data with anyone they
like.

Publications based solely on data from a specific volcano
require an agreement from the observatory that has made the
measurements. Publications combining data from several observatories
are very welcome but all the involved observatories, as well as the
NOVAC steering committee, should be informed about the intentions. In
case of conflicting interests the steering committee decides who should
write the paper. All publications and presentations based on data from
the actual instruments should clearly refer to the network and when
practically possible joint authorship should be offered all
contributing institutes (no problem with the present size of the
network, but may be a problem if the network expands substantially).